The fall season is in full swing, and before we know it, the winter months will be upon us. Winter weather in Kansas City brings cold temperatures, wind, ice, and snow. Proper insulation is critical to protect your home from these winter weather conditions and keep your home at the proper temperature, no matter what time of year it is.

At Cates Heating and Cooling, our team wants to help homeowners in the Kansas City area prepare for the winter season by determining whether or not their homes are well insulated. Ensure you and your family will be comfortable all winter long by inspecting your home’s insulation now.

Why Your Home Needs Insulation

Insulation is required for maintaining comfortable temperatures in your home and ensuring your home is energy efficient. In the winter, insulation keeps warm air from leaking out and prevents cold air from entering the home. Insulation is typically installed anywhere air may escape. Your attic and basement are areas of the home that are more susceptible to leaks and drafts. Therefore, proper insulation in these areas is critical to keeping air inside the home.

Without enough insulation in your home, you will miss out on significant energy savings. In fact, adding insulation can save homeowners up to 15 percent on heating and cooling costs. Areas of the home, such as attics and basements, must be correctly insulated to ensure no warm air is leaving the home, and no cold air is getting in.

Without proper insulation, your HVAC system may also deteriorate more quickly because it must work harder. Heating systems are expensive to replace, so you will want to do everything you can to extend the life of your system.

How to Tell If Your Home Is Insulated Enough

If your home lacks proper insulation, it will be difficult for your HVAC system to maintain comfortable temperatures within your home. In the winter, warm air can seep out of the house. If air is leaking out of the attic, your HVAC system will require more energy to heat your home, which will cause a spike in your energy bill. If you notice that your energy bills are increasing, poor insulation could be the reason why.

Often, it doesn’t matter how efficient your system is if your home is not adequately insulated. The following are other signs that your home may not be insulated enough for winter:

• Fluctuating temperatures: If the rooms in your home feel drastically different in temperature, poor insulation is probably the reason. When your home is insulated enough, temperatures in your home will feel the same from room to room.
• Cold rooms: When certain rooms in the home are considerably colder than others, it could be due to poor insulation. This often occurs in rooms that are above garages or below attics.
• Frozen pipes: Proper insulation protects the home from damage caused by freezing temperatures. However, if you notice freezing pipes in your home, inadequate insulation is likely the culprit. When pipes become frozen, they can burst, causing thousands of dollars in damage.
• Chilly drafts: Drafts occur when cold air enters the home through windows and door frames. This makes certain areas in the home cold, making your heating system work overtime to pump out warm air. Sealing window and door frames with foam insulation will prevent cold air from seeping through cracks.

Ensure your home is prepared for Kansas City winters by inspecting its insulation or getting an expert to inspect it for you. Checking your insulation is especially important if you have any concerns or notice signs that your home doesn’t have enough insulation.

What to Do If Your Home Needs More Insulation

If you think your home needs more insulation, you can either install it yourself or hire a contractor to do this for you. While you can install insulation yourself, even the handiest homeowner may elect to have a professional handle the task. This ensures the right type of insulation is installed in the home.

Types of Home Insulation

Professional contractors can recommend a type of installation that they think is best for the problem areas in your home. However, if you choose to go the DIY route, it is important to know the different types of insulation available.

• Blanket batts and rolls: You can install blanket batts and rolls to any unfinished walls in your home. The material is often made of fiberglass, mineral wool, cotton, or plastic fibers. This material is DIY-friendly, but you should be sure to wear protective gear and clothing.
• Spray foam insulation: This liquid polyurethane hardens into a solid foam once sprayed into the cavity of the wall. Spray foam insulation is best for sealing leaks and gaps in existing walls.
• Foam boards: You can use foam boards to insulate foundation walls, basement walls, and unfinished floors and ceilings. This material is appropriate for both exterior and interior wall sheathing because it reduces the heating conducted through wood and wall studs.
• Blown-in insulation: This type of insulation is made of fiberglass, rock wool, or reclaimed cellulose material. Blown-in insulation is installed using a machine that blows the material into the appropriate space.

How Cates Can Help You Prepare for Winter

While insulation plays a vital role in managing the temperatures inside your home, you will also want to ensure your heating system is working efficiently before temperatures drop. Whether you want to invest in a new furnace or need maintenance on your current heating system, our technicians at Cates Heating and Cooling can help you. We provide HVAC services to homes across the Kansas City Metro, including Overland Park, Olathe, Leawood, and Lee’s Summit.

We also offer 24-hour emergency services. Therefore, if problems arise in your heating system in the middle of the night, our HVAC technicians can come to fix the issue as soon as possible, and you and your family won’t need to go without heat all night.